Exercises that utilize the user's own body weight as the source of resistance are some of the most effective weight training exercises. However, it is often the case that a person wishes to add weight to provide more resistance in order to provide overall conditioning to the body. Exemplary exercises include squats, pull-ups, chin-ups, and dips. These and other similar exercises are often performed without machines or weights. The body weight of the user serves as the only source of resistance. Squats are often performed through the positioning of a barbell or other weight holder. For instance, in the past, squat exercises have been performed by a person balancing a weight on his or her shoulders behind the neck, and thereafter squatting while supporting the weight in this manner. This presents numerous drawbacks, most notably if the person has injured his or her back, or does not have sufficient back strength to support enough weight necessary to properly exercise the muscles stressed by squat exercises.
Other exercises are performed without additional weight or with complex exercise machinery. For instance, pull-ups and chin-ups require a straight bar suspended overhead, and dips require waist-high parallel bars. This is often not possible within the confines of a home. Therefore, access to appropriate machines may not be possible.
After the user has performed these exercises for an extended period of time, his body weight becomes inadequate to fully train the target muscles. In essence, the muscles respond to the shock of training by growing. For further growth, the user must either increase the number of repetitions or sets performed, or must increase the weight. For most exercises, the choice would be to increase weight and thus resistance, but since the lifter's body weight is the only source of resistance, increasing resistance seems impossible.
Additionally, increasing the number of repetitions or sets performed is not a good alternative for most people, for these increases take more time and energy and are not particularly efficient. Many weight lifters train to increase their muscle mass. Only by increasing resistance can a noticeable increase in mass result.
Many trainers realize the benefits as well as the limitations associated with body weight resistance exercises. Accordingly, several prior art attempts have provided ways to allow trainers to overcome the limits of their own body weight.
Some devices have been designed to accomplish the task of increasing resistance by suspending extra weight from the upper body. This approach is dangerous because it raises the center of gravity, creating problems with balance. Other devices suspend weight from the waist, but involve cumbersome and uncomfortable equipment.
The prior art can be categorized in one of two groups. The first group of patents is comprised of U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,167,600 to Baird, 4,948,122 to Andrews, 4,944,509 to Snider, U.S. Pat. No. 4,676,502 to Mahr, and U.S. Pat. No. 3,322,425 to Moore. All of the foregoing patents disclose some type of backpack-like arrangement, or variation thereof, for purposes of adding body weight to the user.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,176,600 discloses a backpack-type arrangement wherein a weight is slid over a shaft and secured by a stop collar through the tightening of a screw. The shaft is connected to a cross-bar, which in turn connects to a harness. Thus, this patent discloses the addition of weight to increase the resistance in exercises in which the user's body weight is used as resistance. However, neither this patent, nor any of the other patents in this group, allows the user to move rapidly from one exercise to the next. Rather, a user must take the additional time necessary to put on a backpack-like apparatus.
The second group of patents consists of U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,588,940 to Price et al., U.S. Pat. No. 4,984,786 to Lemke et al., U.S. Pat. No. 4,589,658 to Gibson, U.S. Pat. No. 3,751,031 to Yamauchi, and U.S. Pat. No. 882,181 to Thomas. All of the foregoing patents pertain to some type of shoulder harness or belt worn by the user from which a weight is suspended using a strap or chain as a means of increasing the user's body weight.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,751,031 discloses a gymnastic apparatus in which weights having a cushioning means are suspended from a chain connected to a waist belt. Yamauchi employs cushioned weights to lessen the impact of the suspended weights when they hit a user's legs. However, although the impact to the user's legs is lessened, the swinging of the weights is not prevented, but is, in fact, enabled by the invention.
In addition, U.S. Pat. No. 5,588,940 discloses a weight supporting body harness for purposes of attaching a weight using a chain. However, this invention does not overcome the problem of the additional time required to put on the apparatus. Further, the patents in this second group fail to adequately solve the problem of the suspended weight swinging and hitting the user's legs.
Thus, a need exists for a weight supporting apparatus which will overcome the limitations of the prior art devices. The weightlifting belt hook of the present invention provides such an apparatus and is a significant improvement over the prior art devices by allowing the user to support the extra weight from the waist and thereby lower the center of gravity. The benefits of the weightlifting belt hook are twofold. First, the weightlifting belt hook facilitates rapid movement from one exercise to the next by allowing the user to simply slide the weightlifting belt hook over a lower back support belt which a weightlifter typically wears. Second, the additional weight is supported against the user's thighs in a manner which prevents it from swinging and hitting the user's legs during the exercise movements.